February 13, 2018

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Boston Dynamics’ robots are the politest ‘pets’ you’ll meet

by John_A

We hope you weren’t planning on sleeping tonight. Boston Dynamics has posted a video showing that its SpotMini robot can hold the door open for its fellow automatons. If one bot needs a helping hand, it’ll signal to another machine nearby that can pry the door open and let it through. It’s very polite… and more than a little unsettling, especially since it’s not clear they’ll extend the same courtesy to humans. At least the robots will have manners when they take over.

If you’re a tad more trusting, this is good news. Robots have typically only had limited cooperation with each other, and this hints at more advanced team-ups where robots can supplement each others’ abilities and accomplish more than they would by themselves. That could be helpful for search and rescue missions, or any situation where it would be impractical to equip every robot with the same features. It’s a positive move — so long as the robots remain friendly.